There had
been extensive plans to evacuate art treasures, saying that in case
Königsberg would be in danger, objects of art and culture have to be
brought to estates and castles of the East Prussian Junker.

Two
objects are named as destinations. The estate "Domäne Richau", 25
miles east of Königsberg, and Castle Wildenhoff, about 25 miles south
of
Königsberg. Witnesses say that boxes had been brought to Wildenhoff
and stored in the cellars in 1944.
Former Polish war prisoners talked about a train wagon, which was
unloaded in Landsberg, 3 miles away, then brought to Wildenhoff and
walled up.

From the
art collection in Kiew, 11 boxes with paintings of West European
artists, 6 boxes with paintings of Russian artists, 15 boxes with
Ikonen and 16 boxes with Ikonen and paintings had been brought to
Wildenhoff. Each box contained between 10 and 134 pieces.

In
Richau, the Ukraine art scientist Polina Arkadijewna Kulshenko
was responsible for the treasures, but in Wildenhoff, there was only
the family Schwerin. That is why the East Ministry recommends in July
1944, to move both deposits to Central or South Germany.

However,
Erich Koch heard about these plans and made Mrs. Kulshenko move from
Richau to Wildenhoff with the art treasure. Gräfin Schwerin could
remember very well that at the end of October/beginning of
November 1944 the treasure had arrived in Wildenhoff under supervision
of a Russian lady, a very educated historian”.

Dr.
Alfred Rohde had visited Wildenhoff before the move. He says is a
letter: ,,Dear Earl! I plan on visiting Wildenhoff on coming sunday to
inspect the rooms which are supposed to hold our paintings. Do you
think I make it in one day? May I be there by train at 9.33 am? Königsberg,
October 17, 1944. Dr.
Alfred Rohde.”

The
transport arrived at the end of October in Wildenhoff. Mrs. Kulshenko
later on remembers that on November 14, 1944 other trucks arrived
under supervision of the SS with machine guns. Transport leader was Dr. Alfred Rohde. Also
the content of this transport was brought to the castle but Mrs. Kulshenko
did not know any details.
It is very strange that Dr. Rohde brought looted art to a place south
of Königsberg between October and November 1944 because the Russian
army was only about 60 miles Wildenhoff.

We know
for sure that such a storage was only supposed to protect from the
danger of air attacks, not to return the treasures. Rhode moved
towards the front line and some people beleive he wanted to deposit
the looted artwork at a save place for their true owners.

When the Schwerin
family had left the castle in January 1945, Mrs. Kulshenko brought
some of the boxes into the cellars with the help of Polish forced
labourers. At the end of
January the castle burned down. One says, a unit of the
SS had started the fire after burrying the treasure near the castle
and dumping boxes in the lakes.

In 1960,
the Polish governement started to search for the Amber Room and other
artwork. The ruins of the castle had been examined and experts of the
museum and of archeology and crime took part at the excavations.

They had
some rich finds among them a copper plate made in Prussia in 1776, nine
medaillions and
plaquetes from the 15th and 16th Century by Italian artists,
but everything was much damaged from the fire and the humidity. They
also found a package with burned drawings by Lovis Corinth, old
chinese porcelaine, a japanese ivory art and a lot of ceramics. Not
the slightest trace of the Amber Room, not even of the iron parts
holding the pieces together...